#Balance Baseline (均衡基準)

Contents

This document defines the balance baseline for the entire Konsei Reiyotan numeric system. When creating a new class/weapon/yoma, moving away from this baseline breaks balance.

Canon — current balance baseline. This document defines the current numeric-system baseline for Konsei Reiyotan(probability anchors, hit rates, Wounds, Energy economy, trait budget, faction balance, gold and Faith economy). If it conflicts with a class-mechanic Canon, the class document takes priority. Authority system: ../co-99-meta/co-99-01-authority.md.

Related: Core Premises · all rules documents

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#1. Basic Design Philosophy

#1 Round = 1~2 Meaningful Choices

• A 1st-rank character(Energy 10~12) can take meaningful actions = 3~5 times in 1 round.
• "Move(2) + attack(2) + reserve counter(1) = one-breath base limit 5" — this is the baseline breath. 2~3 breaths inside a round.
• Once Energy reaches 15 or more, a character takes too many actions in one round → the practical Energy cap is 15 (Finesse+3=13, 15 including traits/buffs).

#Combat Length: 3~5 Rounds

• Easy combat: 2~3 rounds. Elite 1 + Minions.
• Normal combat: 3~5 rounds. Elite 1~2 + many squads.
• Lord-grade combat: 5~8 rounds. Lord-grade enemy(Wounds 6~10) + many retainers.
• If combat goes longer than this, apply pressure through yoma intrusion during the lull step. 7 rounds or more is "too long."

#The Weight of 1 Wound

• A Minion has 1 Wound = instant death. Value of 1 Minion = 1 attack check + Energy 2~3.
• A Hero(Wounds 4~6) must be hit 4~6 times before falling. In normal combat, they are exposed to enemies for 3~5 rounds, so without proper defense/evasion they become incapacitated in 3~4 rounds.
• A Lord-grade enemy(Wounds 6~10) requires 3~5 rounds even if the whole team focuses attacks.

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#2. Core Numeric Baselines

#2d10 Probability Anchors

#Hit Rate Baseline

Baseline: Hit rate against an equal opponent = 45~55%. A grown character facing the same opponent should reach 70% or more.

#Defense Baseline

Defense cap = 19. An attack at 2d10+8(maximum modifier) has a 55% success rate against Defense 19; Defense 20 lowers that to 45%. Values of 20 or more are therefore not impossible checks, but an explicit exception range where even a maximum-modifier character lacks the advantage.

#Wounds Baseline

Wounds 10 is the recommended cap for a standard final Lord-grade enemy. Exceeding it can make an ordinary combat run too long. An enemy built around an explicitly defined ritual, puzzle, or multi-stage structure may exceed this cap.

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#3. Action Economy (Energy) Balance

#Energy-to-Value Table

All actions are balanced around "Energy 1 = base value 1."

#DPT (Fixed Assumption Baseline)

DPT is the expected Wounds dealt to the fixed dummy below during one round. The target is one human with printed Defense 14, from base Defense 10 plus heavy armor 4. The attacker begins in range, and any teppo begins loaded. Exclude movement, defense reserves, enemy reactions, Overload, Fate intervention, extra Mandate tables, recovery on a kill, and allied bonuses. Because every attack targets the same creature, apply ordinary Combo Fatigue at a cumulative -2 from the fourth strike onward, or a cumulative -1 for short weapons in the Core Zone. Do not subtract self-inflicted Wounds or backlash from enemy damage; record them separately.

Without / with Critical separates only the extra Wounds from an ordinary Critical along the same hit-chance sequence. [Lightweight] adds no Critical Wounds; any explicit +1 Wound remains included.

This table compares builds against the same Defense dummy; it is neither a combat-win estimate nor a single balance standard for every situation. Splitting attacks among multiple targets resets Combo Fatigue, while Piercing, Criticals, control, movement, and survival costs vary, so measure those in separate scenario tables. Shugenja Austerity 2 reaches 12.68 even while paying 4 self Wounds, far above the former 2.5–4 guideline. Keep this visible as a separate balance-review gate instead of concealing it as a calculation error.

#Combo Fatigue (Maintained)

Against the same target within the same round, from the 4th hit onward, hit -2 accumulates. Resets when the target changes. (Canon: co-03-04 Rule 4 — accumulates per round, not per breath.)

In the count system, this works together with the one-breath base limit(5), making the suppression stronger.

#Principle: Recovery Types and Stacking

This principle is identical to ../co-99-meta/co-99-02-core-principles.md Principle 4.

"Natural recovery" refers only to passive recovery(automatic lull reset, recovery over time). Active recovery(traits, repair, treatment) is unrelated to natural-recovery restrictions and is divided into 4 types.

For one target in one round, each type applies at most 1 time. Different types stack.

"Cannot naturally recover" state traits(such as an autonomous automaton's Mechanical Body): only passive recovery is prohibited. The 4 active recovery types remain valid. Traits that increase the Wounds cap, such as "Tough", are not recovery and are therefore unrelated and valid.

#4. Power Budget by Trait Grade

All traits must be designed within the budgets below.

#Warning-Sign Checklist

When creating a trait, review it if any of the following apply:

• [ ] Can attack for Energy 0(violates the minimum 1 Energy principle)
• [ ] "Auto hit" or "auto success" applies constantly without conditions(Saint/Renown Title only)
• [ ] Can deal 3 or more Wounds in 1 round without conditions(excluding Critical Hits)
• [ ] "Immunity" is unconditional(always-on Wounds reduction 0 is Renown Title only)
• [ ] Generates Energy above total amount(Energy transfer follows the 1:1 principle)
• [ ] Revives Cohesion from 0 + acts immediately(requires 1-round delay)
• [ ] Powerful ability without per-combat limit(most should be "1/round" or "N/combat")

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#5. Faction Combat-Power Balance

#Faction DPT Baseline (Normal Difficulty, Enemy Baseline)

Baseline: In normal combat, an enemy faction's total DPT = 3~4 Wounds/round. A 4-person allied party(total Wounds 16~24) fights for 3~5 rounds.

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#6. Economy Balance (Gold)

#6.1 Combat-Tier Baseline

Principle: 1 gold ≈ value of Energy 2~3. Gold 20 per combat = about Energy 40~60. It is strong, but cannot be directly converted into other combat resources(Wounds, Cohesion).

#How Combat Gold Works

Konsei Reiyotan gold uses a single wallet(持囊) model. Spoils, rewards, and spending all occur from the same wallet, and there is no separate "combat pool" or "spoils deduction" mechanism.

1. Wallet (持囊) — the PC's total gold. No cap. Preserved across sessions, combats, scenarios, and seasons.
2. Combat carry limit — the cap on gold actually usable during combat. The table's "gold cap per combat(20)" is the standard PC value, and backgrounds or the Merchant class itself do not increase this limit. Merchants gain advantage through wallet turnover(lull income, gold-spending traits), not by increasing the carry limit. Exceptions exist only when stated in a document, such as the villain/expansion class Zakkasho(cap 30, cap 50 at 9th rank through Zaibatsu of the Realm). Even if the wallet holds more gold than the limit, that excess cannot be brought onto the battlefield — leave it at base/lodging. It becomes accessible again after combat.
3. Meaning of "basic possession 5 per combat" — the average carried-gold baseline for a 1st-rank PC(descriptive rule). Even a new PC with no scenario rewards or spoils history is assumed to have about 5 gold in the wallet as travel money/emergency funds. This is not a stipend newly paid every combat, but the initial/maintenance expectation for the wallet.
4. Spending during combat — Merchant "Gold Solves Everything"(1 gold), hiring mercenaries(2 gold), buying elixir(3 gold), and similar costs are immediately deducted from the wallet. They are not deducted from spoils. If the wallet reaches 0 during combat, gold-spending traits cannot activate.
5. Income during combat — Zaibatsu lull +5, recovered bribes/negotiation returns, and similar income are immediately deposited into the wallet. However, deposits above the combat carry limit convert to base storage and cannot be used during that combat.
6. End of combat — keep the wallet state as-is. If "gold d10" is won on the spoils table(11-06), that amount is added to the wallet. At the start of the next combat, wallet balance + scenario rewards gained in the meantime forms the starting amount.

Worked Example (1st-rank normal PC):

• Campaign start. Wallet 5 gold(baseline). Combat carry limit 20.
• Combat 1: buy 1 elixir(3 gold spent). At combat end, wallet 2 gold.
• Scenario reward 30 gold. Wallet 32 gold.
• Combat 2 start: carry only 20 gold from wallet 32; 12 gold remains at base. Usable amount during combat is 20 gold. Buy 3 elixirs(9 gold spent). At combat end, wallet 23 gold(carried 20→11, base 12 returns).

Worked Example (9th-rank Merchant Zaibatsu):

• Wallet 50 gold, combat carry limit 20. Automatic +5 per lull.
• Combat 1 start: carry 20 gold, leave remaining 30 gold at base.
• Lull 1: automatic +5 → carried wallet portion remains 20, excess 5 gold converts to base storage.
• Use Gold Solves Everything 3 times(3 gold spent). Carry 17.
• Combat end: total wallet 50 + 5(lull) - 3(spending) = 52 gold.

Common Misunderstandings:

• ❌ "The combat baseline 5 gold is spoils, and using it reduces the end-of-combat reward." → No. It is a net wallet decrease model.
• ❌ "The cap 20 is the limit on how much can be used during combat." → Half true. More precisely, it is the limit on how much can be brought from the wallet onto the battlefield. Even if the wallet balance is 100 gold, only 20 gold can be taken out and used during combat.
• ❌ "5 gold per combat is automatically paid." → No. The amount accumulated in the wallet is simply the starting possession amount. If a new PC starts with wallet 0 gold, combat also starts with 0 gold(not recommended).

GM Guidance: The wallet/carry-limit description is an abstraction to reduce accounting burden. In actual play, rather than strictly separating base storage and carried gold, it is enough to track only two numbers: "PC wallet total" and "amount usable during combat(class cap)."

#6.2 Economic Tier Declaration — 4 Layers Where Gold Operates

All Konsei Reiyotan gold uses the same currency unit, but is interpreted across 4 tiers according to acquisition cycle and total-volume scale. Do not directly compare the baseline value of one tier with another tier.

Rules for Conversion and Summing Between Tiers:

• All tiers use the same currency(gold), so they accumulate together in the PC wallet. Remaining gold is preserved across scenarios, combats, and seasons.
• The Combat Tier "cap 20" is only the cap on holdings during combat; after combat, the PC wallet accumulates without a cap.
• Scenario Tier rewards are paid when the scenario is completed and remain in the wallet for later combats. A new basic 5 gold is not added each combat; only the class-specific carry cap applies during combat.
• The Long-Term Quest Tier is a progressive layer placed above the Scenario Tier. Because the reward cycle spans several months~several years, the baseline can look several times larger than a single scenario reward, but it must be interpreted as distributed across that whole period.
• The Domain Management Tier keeps production-capacity kokudaka and spendable gold in separate ledgers. Domain kokudaka is not exchanged directly; the Harvest and Trade actions in co-03-10-domain-management.md produce gold income. Do not confuse it with the market price of the commodity 1 koku of rice.

Class-Specific Exceptions:

• Merchant class: 7th-rank Great Merchant Caravan grants +2 per lull, and 9th-rank Zaibatsu grants +5 per lull. The per-combat cap remains 20(§6.1 baseline).
• Zakkasho(04-31, demon/villain class): per-combat baseline 8 / cap 30 / 9th-rank Zaibatsu of All Under Heaven raises the cap to 50. This is a villain-only design that intentionally exceeds standard PC balance and cannot be selected as a PC without GM permission. The economic cap for a standard PC party remains 20.
• Other demon/expansion classes may declare unique economic numbers, but PC use presumes GM permission.

#6.3 PC Starting Gold (Character Creation)

At character creation, each PC has the following by default:

• Basic 5 gold(same value as the Combat Tier baseline. Travel and food money in the pack).
• If the "Merchant's Child" background is chosen: additional 3 gold(same as the background bonus in 08-05 §6.1).
• If another background specifies a separate gold adjustment, follow that(example: "wandering orphan" starts with 0 gold — see background document).

The PC wallet is preserved between sessions. Starting gold is 1-time only, and increases or decreases through combats, scenarios, and quests.

#6.4 Scenario and Quest Tier Design Guidelines (For GMs)

Scenario reward baseline:

• Low-difficulty short scenario(1 session): 3~10 gold.
• Medium difficulty(2~3 sessions): 10~30 gold.
• High difficulty(3 sessions+): 30~80 gold.
• Campaign climax: 80 gold+ or alternative reward(Divine Artifact, masterwork, domain).

Long-term quest(Tier 3) reward baseline:

• The longer the accumulation cycle, the larger a single report reward can be while keeping the overall economy balanced.
• Baseline: full campaign completion cumulative ≈ 10~20 Scenario Tier rewards.

Domain management(Tier 4) uses separate accounting. A domain of kokudaka 100~500 maintains a seasonal income/expense cycle. It is recommended to manage combat/scenario spending and domain spending separately.

#Scenario Application Examples (Flow Between Tiers)

The 3 examples below show how the four tiers intersect in an actual campaign. Values are standard.

Example A — 1-session job (09-01 First Blood):

1. Each PC has basic 5 gold in the wallet(§6.3).
2. Client advance 3 gold/person(low-difficulty Scenario Tier). At combat start, wallet = 5+3 = 8 gold, within combat carry limit 20.
3. During combat, defeat 5 Minions → if an Ebisuya merchant is present, War Economy +5 gold. If no merchant is present, +0.
4. After scenario completion, final payment 5 gold/person. Final wallet = 13~18 gold.
5. Domain management(Tier 4) unused. Overall economy is simple.

Example B — 3-session border job (09-06 Silence of the Dragon Palace):

1. Combat Tier: fluctuates 5~20 gold per session. If a Merchant is included, +5 each lull.
2. Scenario Tier reward: 30/50/80 gold depending on route branch(§6.4 high difficulty). Paid in one lump sum at scenario completion.
3. Also serves as Long-Term Quest Tier: 09-11 Hyakki Yagyo observation cumulative points proceed in parallel(additional 5~10 gold for recording underwater yoma).
4. Domain management linkage: acquired gold may be spent on domain actions such as facilities, training, and festivals. Gold is not converted directly into domain kokudaka.

Example C — Long-Term Campaign Sum (09-08 seed "Gate of the Spirit Realm" arc):

1. Combat Tier: average 15 gold per session(+5~10 if Merchant squad included).
2. Scenario Tier: 3 scenarios in the arc × 40 gold average = 120 gold.
3. Long-Term Quest Tier: cumulative fissure investigation worth hundreds of gold(~1500 gold across the whole campaign).
4. Domain Management Tier: development and disasters change the PC domain's production-capacity kokudaka by 20~50 per season, while mercenary squad contracts cost 20~40 gold per quarter.
5. Core calculation: manage each tier in a separate ledger, and follow the explicit rules for trade, currency exchange, and domain expenditure.

GM Tip: To avoid confusion between tiers, declare "the tier layer for this scenario" at scenario start. Example: "This session uses only Combat Tier + medium-difficulty Scenario Tier. Domain kokudaka is touched only during downtime."

#6.5 Detailed Economy (Optional Rule)

If a table feels that the baseline value 1 gold = 1 koku of rice = food for one adult for 1 year is too large to express daily transactions(tea, lodging, market goods), it may adopt the optional rule of a 3-unit gold/silver/copper currency system.

• Gold(金貨) = Silver(銀貨) 10 = Copper(銅貨) 100
• Rice baseline: gold 1 koku / silver 1 to / copper 1 sho
• Detailed rules: co-08-07-detailed-economy.md (optional economy rules).

Important: Detailed economy is an optional rule. Tables that do not adopt it keep the single gold unit in this §6 unchanged, and all existing rules/scenarios/numbers remain unchanged.

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#7. Faith Balance (Arahitogami)

Principle: Faith 1 ≈ Energy 2~3 + additional effect. But because it carries loss risk, it is less stable than gold.

This document is the anchor for all numeric design. New content should not drift away from it.